Electric bills sky high

Jones1987_2

Hi, ive lived in a 2bedroom apartment in city centre since september. The readings have always been in the 37000 range and 17000 range. But they have been around 170 every 3 months i assume.

However there was a bill for 431 for one month (Feb) apparently which my supplier claim they took the reading. I do not believe this is an accurate bill since how can you rack up a bill that high? Plugs always off when not in use. Nothing left on, only problem could be immersion heater fuse was flicked on for awhile.
We got another meter reading today and the figures are 40000 and 20000 range.

Could anyone tell me whether this is a high reading/average/low

The bills are so up and down its unreal, i dont know what to do really. Any help would be really appreciated.

Thanks.

SwanJon

How do the readings on the bill compare to the readings on your meter?
Were previous bills estimated and this is now catching up?
Are these day & night reads? Are they the right way round?
Feburary weas cold, so if you heat with electricity that would explain some of the big bill...

Jones1987_2

I called up and asked if estimates were catching up, and the women claimed it was for the month of feb alone which is bizzare, the estimates are always around the 37000 and 17000 area, and the 431 one was around 39000 and 18000, and our current reading from today is 40000 n 20000, but i guess its a case of biting the bullet....
Ohwell, 200 quid straight our ur pocket for electric is harsh for a student

SwanJon

So the previous bills were estimates if "the estimates are always around the 37000 and 17000 area" With electric heating you'll use many more night rate units during the winter than other times, your day units won't vary as much.
Next step - energy efficiency.

Jones1987_2

efficiency do u mean switching things off or a better provider?

Things are never left on, only thing that is ever left on constant is the Modem. But could you advise any decent electric providers? Currently with E-On.

Bills have been real dodgy. Considering my dad has 5 people in his household and he pays roughly 80 a month.

Im just totally new to this whole aspect. So any help with providers would be excellent.

Magentasue

Electric heating and immersion heaters are expensive to run - that's why people put gas central heating in! Cooking by electric and electric showers can also make the meter spin. Your bills will be lower over the summer, especially at night if you have storage heaters.

Read your meters every day for a week. Assuming you're not using your heating now, your night readings should be low - less than 3kwh, I would think. Day units should be less than 10kwh. That's about £1.15 a day - you might be using less than this. You can work out how much your monthly summer bills are once you have this info.

Then look at winter use. You need two actual (not estimated readings) when you were using the heating as normal. Divide the numbers of kwh by the number of days charged and calculate monthly cost.

If you know how many kwh you are likely to use in a year, put these figures into a comparison site and see whether you could make savings. Also, check how much of your electricity is used at night - if less than 50% consider getting rid of Economy 7. If you have storage heaters, E7 is likely to be cheaper. Other electric heating and E7 is likely to be much more expensive than a single rate tariff.

E.ON_Company_Representative

Hi jones1987,

If you’re struggling to pay the amount ask E.ON for a payment plan, you will be able to make a number of smaller payments over the rest of this quarter. Just ensure you’ve cleared the bill by the time your next quarterly bill is sent. That should make things easier for you.

Definitely check the tariff suits your usage, E.ON can tell you if you are using enough on the night rate to warrant an E7 tariff. If your not you can be put on a single rate version of your current tariff without a meter exchange, it just takes the click of a button from E.ON.

Brian

Jones1987_2

Hi, thanks for advice guys, but my next question is for E-on rep.
Since september ive recieved 3 bills, one oct, one nov and one for jan. And now ive taken over the electric bill theres one for february.
So what I dont understand is, if it is quarterly bills, why so often?

The fact my ex flat mate moved out? That is the only reason I could assume so many bills in short space of time

E.ON_Company_Representative

Hi Jones1987,

Ask E.ON what billing frequency you are on, it’s normally quarterly but there are customers on monthly billing. I think this was a trial though so it’s unlikely. :cool:

Check the bills you’ve had in quick succession don’t say ‘amended statement’ on the front, if they do you probably are on quarterly but the bills have been revised/amended. This would explain why you’ve had so many recently.

If you told E.ON a flat mate moved out the account may have been closed and re-opened in your name only. This would cause a ‘final bill’ to be sent in between regular quarterly bills, maybe with an amended one as well.

Any of these the case?

Brian

Jones1987_2

Hi, there are no amended bills, unless you mean "estimates". My main concern is the bill totaling 431 for one month. I have readings send to me yesterday, but they will more than likely cost more now, since E on claims they read the meter readings for the month in question. However im gonig to call them and discuss a payment plan because it has been left unpaid for awhile as we have been battling to sort out this situation.

Anyway thanks for your advice and help, much appreciated.

E.ON_Company_Representative

Hi Jones1987,

It is difficult to advise accurately without seeing all the details as I am sure you can imagine!

It does sound like you had an estimated bill followed by a corrected bill based on actual readings.

To check take the bill and look at the current readings, check they're accurate, they'll say A or C next to them (Actual or Customer).

Then look on the same bill at the readings labelled previous, if these are estimated or labelled E then this high bill is likely to be a catch up because the previous bill was estimated too low.

I am assuming here so your right to contact E.ON, remember if the explanation you are given doesn't clear things up keep pressing till it's explained clearly and you understand.

A payment arrangement won't be a problem, agree an amount that's manageable for you.

Brian